Abstract: This invention provides a simple and efficient technique for isolating and purifying alpha-, beta- and especially gamma-cyclodextrins, and also their chemical derivatives. The isolation of different cyclodextrin subforms is based on the use of specially designed macromolecular adsorbents. These adsorbents contain covalently bound ligands which are of suitable size to penetrate the internal cavity of the cyclodextrin molecules and form specific inclusion complexes with cyclodextrins. By means of this invention it is also possible to increase the proportion of any of the cyclodextrin subforms or its chemical derivative by removing the corresponding cyclodextrin subform with a specific sorbent.